There is a growing need for reliable, economical X-ray sources for X-ray lithography. It is known that X-ray sources can be produced by illuminating certain metals with very high brightness laser pulses. Required brightness levels are in the range of 10.sup.11 to 10.sup.13 W/cm.sup.2 for projection lithography and 10.sup.13 to 10.sup.15 W/cm.sup.2 for proximity lithography. To meet future commercial lithography needs, average laser power requirements are about 500 Watts for projection and 1000 Watts for proximity. In addition the lithography process needs call for an X-ray spot diameter of about a few 100 .mu.m. Designing a laser to meet these requirements involves solving several current problems. The first is the correction of aberrations due to thermal distortion and self focusing in the laser rod. This problem is currently being dealt with by utilizing a Stimulating Brillouin Scattering (SBS) cell to remove these aberrations. SBS cell materials perform efficiently for laser pulses of several nanoseconds or greater. For nanosecond laser pulses, the energy needed to achieve the required brightness is 10 to 30 Joules per pulse and the repetition rate needed to achieve the required power is 100 to 30 hertz. This high pulse energy design creates two additional problems. The amount of debris produced by nanosecond pulsed lasers focused on solid targets, when operated at the required brightness and power levels, is unacceptable. (Studies done by Rutherford and CREOL indicate that the debris level from metal targets is related to the pulse duration. The shorter the pulse duration the lower the debris level.) There is a research program underway to reduce debris by using solid xenon as an X-ray target, but it is at a very early stage. The final problem is the cost of the X-ray lithography system. Flash lamp pumped lasers involve high maintenance costs. Maintenance costs can generally be reduced by pumping with diode lasers. Unfortunately, laser diodes required for the 10 joule per pulse 100 Hz lasers costs millions of dollars.
What is needed is a laser system that meets the needs of X-ray lithography to provide 1) high average power and high brightness, 2) low debris levels and 3) low capital and maintenance cost.